From Paramount Pictures and director/star Ben Stiller comes Zoolander 2. Co-written by Justin Theroux (Tropic Thunder, The Leftovers) the sequel also features Owen Wilson, Penélope Cruz, Christine Taylor, Kristen Wiig, Cyrus Arnold, Will Ferrell, Billy Zane, Fred Armison, Justin Bieber and Kim Kardashian. Zoolander 2 is available to own on Blu-ray/DVD now!
Derek and Hansel are modelling again when an opposing company attempts to take them out from the business.
Review
Making sequels is tricky. You have to take the what worked from the source material and push it further without changing it that much. But I think Hollywood is getting better at it; I’ve seen some pretty good sequels lately. Everything that made Zoolander good is in this sequel. Everything. Seriously – it’s like they made a list of every joke in the first movie and called back to each, one by one. Now I don’t mind that in the least – it can’t be overstated how much I liked the first Zoolander.
The problem is, though, they were so busy making this true to its source that they didn’t make the film as stand on its own. The pacing is wonky. I didn’t particularly like the ending (it wasn’t bad, it just wasn’t great). The themes were a bit muddy – it asks questions and then never really answers them. Worst of all, if you hadn’t watched the first film, I’m pretty sure none of this would have made any sense. Maybe I’m being too hard on it, this is entirely possible. After all, the fans can be the hardest to please. But a comedy can have consistent themes and a sequel can work as an independent movie. And it should. Read the rest of Mark Miller’s review HERE.
Special Features
- Feature film in high definition
- The Zoolander Legacy
- Go Big or Go Rome
- Drake Sather: The Man Who Created Zoolander
- Youth Milk
I didn’t know who the hell Drake Sather was and that may be the coolest accomplishment of the Blu-ray special features included on the magnum edition of Zoolander 2. The late Sather was apparently a stand-up comedian in the late 80’s/early 90’s who helped co-create the character of Derek Zoolander with Ben Stiller. The two debuted Zoolander in a skit for the VH1 Fashion Awards and then again several times in other comedic shorts. I had no idea this was a thing – not a single clue that Derek Zoolander had been around for as long as he has – well before the first movie was released. This was truly an eye-opening look into the creation of a cult classic phenom.
I liked the features included in this set a lot actually, everything from the behind the scenes stuff filming in Rome, to the writing process with interviews featuring Stiller himself and Justin Theroux who co-wrote the script. Zoolander 2 may have been “just OK” as a movie, but honestly, considering how over-hyped the original was, I find nothing wrong with the ludicrousness of Zoolander 2. It’s The Naked Gun of our generation and I’m fine with the silliness. PS: That Youth Milk ad with Kristen Wiig – hysterical.
Rating: [star rating=”3.5″]